Jil Sander, the erstwhile German luxury brand, has been acquired by Italian fashion group OTB.

The parent company of Diesel and Margiela bought the house from Japanese fashion group Onward Holding for an undisclosed sum.

Jil Sander, which recently has re-found its fashion footing under husband and wife creative team Luke and Lucie Meier, was founded in 1968 in Hamburg by its namesake designer. Known for her purist, no frills and high quality approach to fashion, Sander was a pioneer for logo-less, luxury minimalism.

Jil Sander has new owner

In a 2010 interview with the New York Times Sander said about her design philosophy: “I felt that it was much more attractive to cut clothes with respect for the living, three-dimensional body rather than to cover the body with decorative ideas. I studied proportions, fabrics and their properties, and I learned to master pattern-making.

“My approach has always been rather sensual. It evolved through multiple fittings and poured back into pattern technique. I sometimes feel that a pattern is almost a fashion statement in itself.

Rumours circulating OTB’s interest in Jil Sander appeared earlier this year. In a statement to WWD, OTB said: “It is true that we are evaluating different opportunities and companies currently on the market. We want to increase our critical mass and we want to do it in a modern and sustainable way, firstly supporting and strengthening the pipeline, and in general the Made in Italy [initiative], as we did all throughout this pandemic, consistently with the strategic vision of the group and of our entrepreneur.”

Image: Jil Sander